German official calls urban development key focus of ties with India

Deputy Head of Cooperation at the German Embassy, Caren Blume, said on Saturday that Germany's focus in India is on urban development, particularly how inclusive transport and mobility for all citizens can be achieved.

Speaking to reporters, Blume recalled that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Prime Minister Narendra Modi had agreed in 2022 to strive to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. She made the remarks as she participated in the Kochi edition of the Indo-German Partnership for Green and Sustainable Development. 

On the Kochi edition of the Indo-German Partnership for Green and Sustainable Development, Caren Blume said, "Today it is really an event. It's in the frame of our Green and Sustainable Development Partnership that Germany is implementing together with India. We have our Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Honourable Prime Minister Modi have agreed in 2022 to really strive to achieve the achievements of the Sustainable Development Goals and there are 17 goals and we focus here on one, urban development, and within urban development specifically, how we can achieve inclusive transport and mobility for all citizens as transport is really the lifeline of a city."

She called Kochi a forerunner in inclusiveness and safety in public transport, saying that the Kochi Metro is already implementing many measures.

"We heard in the discussion, it was even mentioned that the Kochi Metro is already an island which is kind of perfect but it's an island. Kochi Metro is already implementing a lot of measures for inclusiveness and also safety. They have stations where they employ many women, which also gives women a feeling of safety. They have the lightning, they have ramps, it's accessible. So they are really, really a forerunner in inclusiveness and safety in public transport," Caren Blume said.

She stated that during the discussions, the connectivity of the last mile was noted as an issue. She noted that there is still room for improvement if Kerala introduces low-floor buses.

"I think there are these islands which are working, I mean, maybe even better than in Germany. They really working extremely well and if you look around here, even here, it's really great and the water network, we are so happy we can cooperate as Germany with KMRL and ... on this. But then there are also these kinds of empty pockets. We heard in the discussion that the connectivity of the last mile is really an issue. Then, I think the buses are not accessible really. But I notice even if introduce or Kerala introduces the low-floor buses, then the driving behavior, the whole infrastructure, there is still some room for improvement where a lot of things needs to be done," Caren Blume said.

She stated that she wants to see progress in Kochi and spoke about a project supported by the German organisation GIZ.

"Definitely, I want to see the progress and I want to see how it moves along. You know, we have a really interesting project supported by GIZ right now, a German organization, where we look at some roads that can be shared roads, a completely new concept, as far as know, to Kochi, because the roads are so narrow, you cannot go with western concepts where we have bicycle lanes and different lanes for different uses of the roads, but just share the roads and make them walkable, cycleable and a safe space for every citizen to move," she said.